


In Life, In Death, In Promises

by LunaD11



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alphys appears in the last chapter, Angst, Brotherly Angst, Character Study, Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Papyrus remembers, Souless Frisk, a little bit of Undyne, could be considered pretty violent, first encounter, the deaths will probably end up too cliche...sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-23
Updated: 2017-11-18
Packaged: 2018-05-15 11:52:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,729
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5784370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LunaD11/pseuds/LunaD11
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <em>Sans stood there, eyes locked with the child. His nerves stood up on end, he felt sweat start to appear on his skull. “You’re not human…are you.” The child's face contorted unnaturally as it smiled, drawing a finger to its mouth. </em>
</p>
<p>What happens when the skeleton's first encounter with a human ends up being a soulless Frisk? Until now the only resets Sans had gone through had been because of Flowey. Papyrus hadn't remembered any of those, just like everyone else. But ever since Frisk started resetting, Papyrus has been unable to forget. </p>
<p>Update 11/18/17: Fic is completed!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Life

**Author's Note:**

> The very first run and Frisk's already sold their soul.

Papyrus finished vacuuming the carpet and stuffed the vacuum cleaner in the kitchen closet. He walked back into the living room and turned to Sans who was slouched on the couch. "SANS YOU HAVE WORK TO DO," he pulled the blanket out from under him, "GET UP YOU LAZY BONES!"

Sans flipped over, almost twirling onto the ground when his blanket was ripped from him. “Oh man, how cruel. It’s so cold bro, it’s un _blanket_ able.” He smirked and readjusted his body, folding in on himself. Papyrus decided to ignore his brother’s remark as he folded the blanket and set it on the back of the couch.

"What's your hurry anyway, it's just barely morning…" Sans mumbled.

"I THE GREAT PAPYRUS HAVE EARLY MORNING WATCH DUTIES." Papyrus posed, unfazed by Sans’ lack of enthusiasm for the new day. "UNDYNE EXPECTS MUCH FROM ROYAL GUARDS, I HAVE TO SHOW HER MY IMMENSE DEDICATION!" Papyrus opened the front door and called back to Sans before heading out, "I BETTER FIND YOU AT YOUR POST AND NOT GRILLBY'S AFTER MY ROUNDS!"

Even though Sans would have preferred a more peaceful sleep, he loved seeing Papyrus so passionate about everything he did…even if that meant not being able to sleep in. Sans grabbed his jacket and trudged outside. He was met with snow laden grass and the smell of Grillby's coaxing him in. _Maybe I could just grab a quick bite before work…yeah, a quick bite wouldn't hurt anyone…and besides, Pap is always telling me how important starting the day with a good meal is._

Sans opened the front door of the building and was greeted by the overhead bell as well as the other regulars.

“Heya Grillby, I’ll take an order of fries” Sans said, signaling to the bartender as he sat on the stool. While Grillby turned to prepare his order, Sans stuck the ketchup bottle in his jacket. Grillby paused before placing the fries on the table. He glowered at Sans.

“Heh heh...don’t worry, I’ll get ya another one!” Sans stated, winking.

Papyrus stood in the snow outside the town recalibrating his puzzles. He spent the first part of his morning thinking of new puzzles and traps he could build. He jotted his ideas and comments down in a small notebook that he stuffed in his battle body. "NYEH HEH!" Papyrus stood and admired the work he had finished before moving onto patrolling.

Sans sighed at his empty plate. “This was a much better idea.” Grillby side-eyed his costumer. Sans laughed nervously “Ok. I’ll head to work I swear! Don’t worry I’m sure I haven’t missed anything _too_ exciting.” Sans walked out, teleporting near his post at the ruins. Sans felt even more sluggish and tired than he did this morning and wished he could just head back to the warm couch at home. Sans’ smile tugged as he remembered how excited Papyrus was every time he came to check on Sans at his post ‘The human could be here any moment!’ he would spout every single day.

Papyrus had been working extra hard recently, running around preparing ‘only the most excellent of puzzles’. Suddenly Sans smile faltered. He noticed how dense the atmosphere around him was. Unsure why, he found himself feeling uneasy. He was surrounded by silence. It was like the entire world had run and hide. Sans turned towards the doors to the ruins. He hoped a human would come sooner than later, _especially one that liked japes_. The thought of papyrus bright eyed and excited made him incredibly happy. Still, Sans was glad his post came before Papyrus’ because if something _was_ up, he’d be able to take care of it before Papyrus came along.

Papyrus hummed as he made his way towards his post, it was holding up quite well despite the increasing amount of snow. To other’s the station could have been mistaken for a child’s fort, but Papyrus acted like it was the greatest thing he had ever created. After writing a quick note and plastering it to his post he started towards his brother's post, ready to burst into Grillby’s if he wasn't there.

Papyrus ran past one of Sans puzzles and abruptly stopped, letting out a frustrated "nyeh." 

"I thought I told Sans to recalibrate his puzzles,” Papyrus muttered to himself as he fixed the puzzle, “what if a human had come before I saw this? It would ruin EVERYTHING!" he called back when he heard soft footsteps in the snow. "SANS! I CANT BELIEVE YOU LAZYBONES, WHAT IF-" he stopped abruptly, searching for his brother, instead he found a small figure in front of him

"...OH. YOU'RE NOT...SANS." He kneeled down, studying them. "WHAT KIND OF MONSTER ARE YOU?" The small figure stood, unfazed. "Wait..." Papyrus noticed the striped shirt on the figure, "Oh...OH..ARE YOU A... A HUMAN CHILD??" Papyrus shot up and danced about before snatching the child up. "I-I CANT BELIEVE A HUMAN IS HERE! I CAN PRACTICALLY FEEL THE FAME!" Papyrus abruptly stopped, "I HAVE TO SHOW SANS!" He dashed off across the way, holding the child away from him like an awkward cat.

The sound of footsteps crunching through snow broke Sans from his thoughts. His focus had slipped for the barest second and there Papyrus was, barreling towards him, in his hands a very disgruntled thing in a striped t-shirt. Sans couldn’t keep his eyes off the figure, for some reason it unsettled him. It was very dirty and had a dissociation about it. Papyrus almost collided with Sans, practically vibrating with excitement. Papyrus seemed to be fine, the child in his hands placated. "What do you have there bro?" He smiled, hoping the worry bubbling inside him would dissipate.

Papyrus hopped from foot to foot, trying to figure out how to expel all the excitement. "SANS! LOOK WHAT I FOUND!" He shoved the apathetic child in Sans face. "THIS IS THE GREATEST DAY EVER," Papyrus set the child down, suddenly quiet. “Something up Papyrus?” Sans said, pulling his attention away from the human. Papyrus placed a hand on his jaw, "Don't you think this was a little TOO easy Sans? I MEAN, I DIDN'T EVEN GET TO TRY OUT ANY OF MY PUZZLES ON THEM!" He stooped down in front of Sans and whispered, "Do you think they would still do the puzzles?" Papyrus became unaware of the increasingly ominous intentions of the child he had turned his back to.

“I don’t see why not,” Sans shrugged and whispered back, “but uh...shouldn’t you introduce yourself first?”

Papyrus jetted up, flustered. “O-OF COURSE…YOU, HUMAN, HAVE BEEN CAPTURED BY ME” Papyrus placed a hand on his chest and trilled, “THE GREAT PAPYRUS! BUT HAVE NO FEAR SMALL ONE, FOR THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS A FAIR SKELETON AND SHALL GRANT YOU TRIAL BY PUZZLE! NYEH HEH HEH, IF YOU CAN SOLVE ALL OF THE PUZZLES ME AND MY BROTHER CREATED THEN YOU SHALL BE GRANTED FREEDOM! HOW DOES THAT SOUND?”

“I think that sounds fair enough.”

“I WAS TALKING TO THE HUMAN!”

“Whoops.”

Both the skeletons waited for a response from the human child. They stood there staring at the skeletons. The pit inside Sans returned, doubling in size. “Well...I wouldn’t take that as a no.”

“Hmm, VERY WELL. SANS, ONTO THE FIRST PUZZLE!” Papyrus took off towards the next area. Sans stood there, eyes locked with the child. His nerves stood up on end, he felt sweat start to appear on his skull. “You’re not human…are you.” The child's face contorted unnaturally as it smiled, drawing a finger to its mouth.

The child twirled around and took off after the taller skeleton. Sans’ eyes widened in horror as he realized that that _thing_ , that threat, was going to play games with his brother. It was too late now, _stupid stupid!_ _If I hadn’t gone to Grillby’s I could have prevented this! How do I tell Pap that he has to forget about the kid, to just walk away from his one chance to be in the royal guard?_

“Hey Pap hold up!” Sans dashed desperately to his younger brother. “Listen…I don’t think this human likes puzzles, why don’t we just wait ‘til the next one?”

The child quickly tugged at the taller skeleton’s cape and looked up sadly. “SANS I DON’T THINK THE HUMAN AGREES. I THINK THEY WANT TO DO THE PUZZLES…BESIDES, WHY WOULD I WASTE A PERFECTLY GOOD OPPORTUNITY TO SHOW UNDYNE THAT I'M ROYAL GUARD MATERIAL?”

Sans glared at the child and snatched their hand from his brother, directing them several feet away and out of earshot. The child struggled against the smaller skeletons powerful grip. “I don’t know what you’re playing at kid, but you better stop if you don’t want to have a bad ti-“ Something was wrong, Sans looked down to see fluid bubbling in-between the two of them. His chest hurt like hell and his stats had dropped. _W-What?_ It took Sans a moment to realize that the child had a weapon in their hand. The kid stared at him coldly, arm outstretched, red covering the small knife held in their tiny hand. "What?" He said again, falling to his knees as he choked on red fluid. Blood painted the white snow around them. He clutched the front of his shirt as he dropped to his side. The child giggled and smeared blood onto their face lovingly.

Papyrus stood confused, he couldn't process anything that had just occurred. Both hands flew to his chest, he was scared. The child looked up at him, smiling. The look in their eyes sent a jolt of nausea through Papyrus. "I-I..." Papyrus stepped back. _Sans was on the ground wasn't he? Why was he on the ground?_ Papyrus felt dread as his body screamed for him to not look down, to run away as fast as he could, he knew he shouldn't look...but he did.  
"S-Sans...?"

Sans could barely see the face the child was making, he saw the shoes start to step over him. "Papyrus, you need…to run. You need to… get out of here.” His voice was raspy and his mouth kept filling with fluid causing Sans to choke and splatter more of it on the snow. Everything was turning fuzzy, all of his nerves popping about. He could feel his soul struggling. He turned his head, watching the human advance.

Papyrus' fear was broken by his brother’s voice. He ran past the human and knelt down, shakily placing a hand on Sans’ chest. “Sans…” He tentatively cradled his brother’s head with the other hand.

The humans smile fell. It stood there watching. _He ignored us_.

The thought of leaving his brother right now was absurd. Papyrus repeated his brother’s name, this time his voice broke as tears started to fall. "D-don't!...Y-you'll be okay!" He hiccupped. "PLEASE brother-" It felt like Papyrus' soul was thrown into a shredder when he saw Sans’ eyes start to disappear. "YOU STAY WITH ME SANS, YOU LAZY BONES YOU STILL HAVE WORK TO DO!!" Papyrus started sobbing, the thought of losing his brother was so foreign to him. Sans was always there. Sure he was capable of driving him up the wall and he never seemed to finish his work, but Sans was Sans, and Papyrus wouldn't trade him for the world.

"I HAVE A BUNCH OF NEW PUZZLES PLANNED, W-WHO’S GOING TO HELP ME BUILD THEM?!" Papyrus leaned down and touched skulls with his brother "... _PLEASE_..." Papyrus clutched Sans’ small body, almost as if the action itself could help prevent or protect him from what Papyrus knew was inevitable. Sans felt comfort in his brother’s embrace, his soul screamed for someone to save Pap. _Please don’t kill him…please…_ Sans could feel himself drop farther into the darkness and soon, he could no longer feel Papyrus’ presence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, hope you enjoyed at least some of this drivel! I've never published any of my fanfics online (mostly because I can never get myself to finish them, hopefully this one is small enough for that not to matter heh heh..) Funfact is this fanfic actually started out as an rp between me and my friend Tay ([ElektrifiedOblivion](http://elektrifiedoblivion.tumblr.com/)). Hopefully she'll post her version so I can link it *v*b
> 
> There's so many theories as to why Sans is the only monster to be shown bleeding in the game. Whether its because he has ketchup in his jacket or not, one of my personal favorites is the a shock factor of the player who, up until then, had only been shown monster's disintegrating.


	2. Death (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grillby's makes everything better... _right?_

Sans awoke to his body experiencing a hypnic jerk. He bolted up, his nerves on end from the blood curdling screams he was hearing in his head. He fought off covers as his eye lit up the room. Realizing that _he_ was the one making the awful noise, Sans covered his mouth. He couldn’t stop shaking, he clamped a second hand over his mouth when he realized he still was screaming. _Papyrus! Oh GOD what did they do to him?!_ Sweat poured from his body as his screams turned into sobs. He folded in on himself and squeezed his eyes shut, begging himself not to start hyperventilating. Sans rocked as the ache in his chest lingered, the knife still felt all too real.

Sans clutched his head. _It’s not real! It’s not real!_ _It’s not real!_ But _God_ was it real. In what way did that thing cruelly kill his brother, did they kill him slowly? Did they make it painful? Sans would never know what happened. Thank the heavens for that. He didn’t want to think about it, but the thoughts wouldn’t stop coming. _I can’t-!_

The look in the child’s eyes…Sans wouldn’t have been surprised if it had cut off Papyrus’ bones one by one. Shaking, Sans jumped out of bed, slamming to floor as covers strangled him.

In the other room Papyrus sat, bewildered. _What had happened? How did he get here?_ Papyrus stared at the wall, clutching at his pillow with eyebrows furrowed. A chill went through his body and he jumped as he heard a terrifying scream. Papyrus hugged the pillow tighter. _Whose voice was that?_ It came from the other side of the wall. He slowly got up as he started remembering an awful memory, _Sans...Sans was...SANS WAS..._ Papyrus jumped to the door when he heard an awful clatter. Tears coated his face. _SANS WAS...HE WAS..._ Papyrus dashed across the hall, desperate. _That was a dream right? It was all just a joke right? His brother was in his room where he was supposed to be, RIGHT??_

Papyrus choked back air and fell to the floor when he saw his brother, fallen in a heap, a mess of shivers, tears, and blankets. "S-SANS I-" Papyrus tried to tell him he was so relieved, confused, terrified, anything. But all that came out was unintelligible cries. He grasped Sans’ small form with great strength, and wrapped him in a never-ending hug, the kind where you’re not sure you’ll ever be let go. His hands trembled as he snatched at covers, trying to get as physically close to his brother as he could. His grip was so tight it was almost painful. He continued to cry into his brother, head burrowing into Sans’ neck.

"I-I THOUGHT Y-YOU…YOU," another wave of tears started as Papyrus tried and failed to speak. He sat rocking back and forth, his brother looking much smaller than normal in his lap. It took Sans an eternity to register that Papyrus was holding onto him so desperately. He was still having trouble differentiating the past with the present timeline. He grabbed onto Papyrus as his body finally began to calm down. Both of them sat there rocking, incapable of finding the right words. The thoughts in their minds quieting as the sole comfort of their brother being there overruled any other. After a while Sans realized that Papyrus was having as much a hard time as he, if not harder and attempted to comfort him.

“Pap it’s okay, I’m fine…Just was a little clumsy, alright? It was just a nightmare. I’m ok.” He placed a hand on his brother’s shoulder. All Sans wanted was to completely forget what had occurred, and never go through it again. If Sans never saw another human again it would be enough. No one was going to take his brother from him. Not again.

Papyrus stopped rocking as his brother wiped tears off his face. His words brought comfort, but the memories were still as vibrant as before. Although confused, he realized that they must not be true memories, as they were both safe in there house. He was safe, his brother was safe. Papyrus wasn't sure he would ever look at a human the same way again. The pain of the loss didn't go away, and the fear of the human still stood, but holding onto Sans helped. He closed his eyes and pressed his forehead to Sans'. The tears slowly died away and Papyrus continued to hold him, refusing to let up despite feeling a wave of tiredness.

"Sans...what happened?" He whispered. "I saw you...you..you died. I KNOW you did, I held you when-" a lump in his throat formed. "That human...I don't remember how, but I ended up back here?" He heard Papyrus' words distantly. Slowly, panic built up within him as he realized that Papyrus was talking about the same memories that _he_ was thinking about.

“Paps what are you…you mean you…” Sans straightened and grabbed his brother’s face. “What did they do to you?” He said, raising his voice. His brother squirmed under the sudden attention. He didn’t really want to think about what happened, let alone worry Sans with it. “I…it…it didn’t do anything…” Papyrus replied but he couldn’t look Sans in the eye.

Sans stared at Papyrus for a minute. When he still wouldn’t make eye contact Sans sighed and dropped his hands. “That human…” Sans started, “they have the power to relive a day, to reset any actions they inflict. A power like that…shouldn’t belong to _anyone_.” They sat there, reluctant to let go of each other, comforted by one another’s presence. Sans thought coldly about the human, if he ever saw them again, _boy were they in for a bad time_. Sans felt rage boil inside him, but he couldn't sustain the feeling for long as exhaustion began to circulate through him.

Sans was surprised when he realized Papyrus wasn’t asking any questions. Perhaps he was too tired.

Papyrus was quiet, worrying thoughts filled his mind. Sans watched Papyrus whose eyebrows were furrowed in deep thought.

"What happened…after I…" He couldn't finish the thought, afraid of what painful memories would surface inside his brother. Sans was not afraid of death. In fact, he would welcome it with open arms if it weren't for Papyrus. Living was exhausting. Fighting was exhausting. Papyrus made life worth living through the awful inevitability of the resets. What did he hope to accomplish by putting Papyrus through those moments again? Sans felt guilty but he needed to know if the human said anything to Papyrus, something that could help them get the upper hand.

Papyrus remembered what happened after Sans died, but he wanted so badly to never speak of it again. He had trouble weighing his urgency to know what exactly was going on, and the screaming in his mind telling him to never think about it again. _No._ The human had accused Papyrus of being ignorant, how even his own brother knew of the humans powers. He needed to face his fears. The human had left him there to suffer, completely alone. Papyrus wondered if his suffering wasn't enough amusement for the human since he had woken up in his bed some time after. He squeezed Sans unconsciously. They enjoyed striking others down, and they would be back for sure. Papyrus could feel it. _Would the same things happen today?_

"It doesn't matter anymore, what happened wasn't real, right?" Papyrus picked Sans up and started carrying him downstairs. "Maybe...we should just stay inside today." He set Sans on the couch, covering him with a blanket. He paused, an intrusive thought telling him that he shouldn’t let go of Sans. In attempts to ignore it he turned towards the kitchen, his back to his brother. "I...I think that would be safer..." Papyrus wrung his hands as he walked into the kitchen.

Sans, afraid of how shaken up Papyrus seemed, decided to comply. He grabbed the remote and let himself relax on the couch. MTT cooking was on, causing his mind to drift back to his brother who was attempting to make spaghetti in the next room. Sans furrowed his brows when he noticed Papyrus was quiet while making dinner. There were no dramatic outbursts about cooking, pans being thrown, fire, no passionate actions at all. Sans heart fell. He didn’t feel like watching TV anymore and decided to shuffle into the kitchen. Sans watched his brother slowly stir the pasta at the stove, his face downcast. Papyrus didn’t even know Sans was there until he felt small hands wrap around his waist.

“Oh, Sans!” Papyrus attempted to regain his composure, “The spag’ is almost done, why don’t you grab some dishes from the cupboard.”

Sans didn’t move. After a while he whispered, “I’m sorry you have to go through this.” Papyrus stopped stirring.

“What do you mean Sans? We both are going through this, I would rather we went through it together.” He smiled weakly at his pasta. Sans grip on his brother loosened.

 _Yeah, together…_ Sans thought about telling Pap about previous resets, and how up until now the only monster with those powers was the flower…But Sans couldn’t bring himself to. Papyrus was already so affected, it would only make things worse. No matter what, Sans would always choose his own suffering over his brothers. “Yeah. You’re right bro. I’ll go get those dishes.” Sans opened the cupboard and pulled out two bowls, a mischievous smile made its way onto his face. Papyrus turned the stove off and looked up to see that Sans had disappeared.

“Sans?” Papyrus heard two distinct knocks come from inside the kitchen. He knelt next to the source and called out, “Hello?”

A small voice muffled by wood replied, “You’re uh…supposed to say ‘who’s there’ bro.”

“Sans I don’t see the point in-“

“C’mon bro just do it!”

Papyrus sighed, “Who is there brother?” He heard snickering from inside.

“Dishes.”

“Dishes who?” Sans opened the small door and held up the two bowls, winking at his brother. “ _Dishes_ a really bad joke.”

Papyrus stood, stomping his foot. “SANS THAT’S THE WORST ONE YET!!”

Sans crawled out from the cupboard, “You’re smiling aren’t you?”

Papyrus crossed his arms, “I AM AND I HATE IT!”

Sans was content with the small reversion back to Papyrus’ normal self and placed the bowls on the table. Papyrus brought over the spaghetti and they ate in silence. Now that the skeletons had been well fed, they ended up in a heap of blankets on the couch. There hadn’t really been any communication since Sans had pulled out the dish joke, but then again, they weren’t really sure what they should talk about. Sans was very content to just lay there in comfort. If it weren’t for the buzzing in his heart, he doubted he would ever leave. He ignored it for a few hours, and just as Sans was ready to try talking to Pap about his side of the ordeal, he fell asleep.

Papyrus caressed his brother’s head as he snuggled up on his shoulder. Carefully, Papyrus laid his brother down on the couch, replacing himself with pillows. He crouched there staring at his sleeping brother’s face for a minute, enjoying the peaceful expression he rarely had, before grabbing his coat and quietly exiting the house.

Sans switched positions and splayed out his arms. He blearily looked up and patted the pillows next to him. Feeling a distinct lack of skeleton, Sans sat up and called out. When no reply came Sans jumped off the couch and made his way up to Papyrus’ room. _Perhaps the couch was too uncomfortable for him._ He opened the door and called out again. The room was completely empty. Sans stood there trying to process scenarios. _He didn’t…did he?_ Sans bolted down the stairs out the door into the cold snow. The town was dead silent and Sans had a hard time making out any figures in the dark. He rushed down in the direction of the Snowdin welcome sign, calling out for his brother. It was getting harder for Sans to breathe, _what if the human- what if they…!_ Sans whipped around violently, his eye flickering frantically. He felt his skull all but crack as he was ricocheted into the snow. He whined and held his head, only to perk up when he heard a voice.

“SANS WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU DOING?” Papyrus was splayed out in front of him, rubbing his ribs. Sans visibly melted into the snow with a _thunk_ , the pain being replaced with relief. Papyrus grumbled and picked up the paper bag he was carrying. “YOU SHOULD REALLY WATCH WERE YOU’RE GOING…WHY WERE YOU EVEN OUT HERE ANYWAY-“ Papyrus stopped talking when he saw his brother place his hands on his face and start laughing softly. “Sans are you okay? You didn’t crack your skull did you?” He knelt down and grabbed one of Sans hands in attempt to check him. Papyrus stopped when he saw a distinct trail of tears.

“I…I thought you…” Sans whispered.

Papyrus plopped a greasy bag on Sans’ chest. Sans peaked through his hands to see that it was from Grillby’s. “I thought you might be hungry later so I decided to get you something before Grillby’s closed…I’m sorry Sans, I thought I would be back before you woke up.”

Sans sighed. “You really are the coolest brother.” Papyrus was about to agree when he spotted just how poorly his brother was dressed.

“SANS! WHERE’S YOUR COAT?! YOU COULD CATCH A COLD OUT HERE!” Sans grabbed the bag and pilfered through it, pulling out a fry. Papyrus groaned and motioned to his feet. “YOU DON’T EVEN HAVE YOUR SLIPPERS ON, ALL YOUR TOE-BONES ARE GOING TO FALL OFF! AT LEAST PUT SOME SOCKS ON BEFORE YOU DECIDE TO TAKE A JOG IN THE SNOW!”

“Ok.” Sans happily took the berating and munched on his food. "IF YOU EAT LYING DOWN YOU'll CHOKE ON YOUR FOOD!" Sans threw another fry into his mouth. 

Papyrus sighed and picked Sans up in one arm. "What in the world would you do without me?"

Sans hoped he would never have to find out.

“Let’s go back already, your tears have frozen to your face.”

"Ok."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for the kind words! I made this chapter a little longer since I felt guilty about changing the update times.


	3. Death (Part 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy shit, it's been over a year and I found these last few chapters on my drive after my computer died... I have no idea why I never posted the rest of the chapters (probably bc the last chapter never got written), but I'll be finishing this fic finally in the month. Can't believe I became the kind of fic writer I hate. The end is finally in sight guys.

Sans woke up to a pile of drool and leftovers. _Aw man, Paps is gonna be so mad,_ he thought as he swept crumbs off the bed. He spotted a forgotten fry under his pillow and threw it into his mouth before heading downstairs.

Sans smile faltered when he saw Papyrus quietly sitting in the kitchen alone. “Mornin’ bro. Uh, what’re you doing?”

Papyrus turned and greeted Sans with a smile, “O-Oh, just thinking about starting new recipe. I’ve been so busy I haven’t been able to try out any of my new cooking techniques that Undyne showed me…”

“That’s cool, you should take it over to her it after your rounds.”

Papyrus stood and walked over to the stove, “Y-Yeah…” Sans noticed that Papyrus was still wearing the same clothes he wore yesterday. He wasn’t sure he should say anything.

“Well…I’m going to head out.” Sans turned towards the door before Papyrus grabbed his arm. “W-Wait, where are you going?”

Sans looked back at his brother.

Papyrus abruptly let go of Sans. “Uh…” He stared at the floor. “It’s just…I-I think a snowstorm is coming in, it’s probably safer just to stay inside. But…I-If you need anything I can go get it!”

Sans furrowed his eyebrows. “Ok.” He waked back into the kitchen. “I’m kinda hungry. Was gonna head over to Grillby’s.”

“I can make you something to eat!” Papyrus chipped up, pulling out a large pot and filling it with water. “I got some new spices the other day that will surely impress you!” Sans watched Papyrus turn the stove on and hum quietly.

Sans sighed. “Hey bro…”

“Hmm?” Papyrus said absentmindedly as he gathered ingredients.

Suddenly the pot went flying off the stove, tumbling over the floor with several wicked clangs and spraying boiling water everywhere. Both brothers froze. Papyrus gripped his hands and whispered, “D-did you feel that?” Sans eye flickered. Icy adrenaline washed over his bones. Papyrus was trying his hardest not to tremble. The fact that _Papyrus_ of all people looked so freaked out scared the hell out of him almost more than the foreboding atmosphere he felt.

_It’s the human. They’re back._

Papyrus quickly grabbed a rag and began cleaning the water off the tile.

“Pap…I need to know,” Sans began. He didn’t want to upset Papyrus, at the moment he seemed so…fragile. Sans slowly knelt down and placed his hand over Papyrus’, halting his hastened wiping. “…Exactly _what_ happened?”

Papyrus stared at the floor. Sans could feel his hand shaking through his gloves. He dropped his shoulders and sighed.

"Sans _please_..." Papyrus' voice cracked. Awful flashbacks filtered through his head. He placed a hand on his skull. Tears started to pool in his sockets. "...I-I can't go through that again, not with you gone."

Sans felt himself breaking all over again. “…You won’t Paps,” He hugged Papyrus tightly, “I’m right here. I’ll always be right here.”

Papyrus let out a shaky breath as Sans rubbed circles into his back. _What the hell did they do to you Pap?_

They spent the next couple hours dancing over each other’s toes, afraid of upsetting one another, they watched TV, and played the occasional board game. Sans was happy to spend the day with his bro, especially seeing him back to his old self. The only indication that Sans had of the night before was when Papyrus would give him a lingering look, a pained afterthought aging his facial features. Sans found Papyrus touching him a lot more than normal, just grazes or soft strokes, but Sans knew better. He had been in the same mindset Papyrus was now in, grounding techniques to remind himself that Sans was indeed real. Sans found that the farther the day went the more often he would catch Papyrus giving him guilty glances.

With each passing hour Papyrus grew more and more anxious. Soon his brother couldn’t sit still. He ended up cleaning the whole house. Sans winced when he took the bed sheets out of his room, expecting some bereavement for the mess he made. But Papyrus simply walked past him and stuffed the sheets into the washer. He sat down and watched them spin for the entire duration. Sans would have rathered his brother give him grief than this. Why wasn’t he badgering him like normal?

A nagging thought itched in the back of Sans’ head. He dismissed it several times, praying it wasn’t true. After everything was washed and back in their rightful place, Papyrus resorted to walking aimlessly around the house. Sans tried to get him to play another game, or entice him with puzzles but Papyrus would simply shake his head. Sans finally called him out when his brother had opened the fridge to count the spaghetti containers for the ninth time.

“Exactly what are you _marinating_ in, bro?” Papyrus closed the fridge and looked at Sans for the first time in a while.

His eyes darted to the wall, “J-JUST WONDERING WHAT UNDYNE’S HAVING FOR DINNER.” Quickly Papyrus pulled out one of the many containers of spaghetti from the fridge. “PERHAPS I SHOULD BRING HER SOMETHING…” It’s likely that Papyrus wasn’t actually asking Sans because he began throwing a makeshift dinner into a bag. Sans eyebrow rose higher with each item his brother was sweeping into the bag.

“Hey Pap, do you realize you just put dogfood in there?”

Papyrus abruptly stopped. Sans could see the wheels in Papyrus’ mind turn. “MAYBE SHE WOULD LIKE TO TOP HER SPAGHETTI WITH IT.”

“Ok, what about that other stuff?”

“WHAT OTHER STUFF? EVERYTHING IN HERE IS PERFECTLY NORMAL DINNER THINGS!”

“ _Pap_ , you just threw our meat grinder in there!”

“NONESENSE!” Papyrus cinched the bag and walked out of the kitchen.

“Hold on,” Sans grabbed Papyrus’ arm, “you’re not going to Undyne’s- _are you?_ ” Papyrus flinched, confirming Sans’ suspicions.  _No, no, please don’t…_ Panic began to rise inside him.“You…you’re going to fight that human…” Sans’ voice cracked, “ _aren’t you?”_

Papyrus was afraid to look back, he could imagine his brother’s face just fine from the sound of his voice. Papyrus’ shoulders hunched in resignation as he whispered, “It’s out there right now…Isn’t it??” He turned and pulled his hand gently away from Sans’ grasp. “Who else are they hurting? Who has gotten killed while I’ve been sitting in the safety of our house?”

Sans didn't know how to make him understand. " _Papyrus_ … It’s impossible to kill that thing. Trust me!”

“…So we just accept this while our friends are slaughtered?”

Sans stared at the floor. It was easier to give up. Why didn’t Papyrus see that there was no point? Doesn’t he know that everything will just reset? Every time Sans had fought that annoying yellow flower he would just wake up at a time before it happened- _even if he had obliterated it_. Eventually Sans quit interfering, even if they ended up killing some townsfolk eventually they would come back after the reset. This was the same…wasn’t it?

Papyrus’ heart sank. “I see….” He turned and looked at his brother who was still staring at the carpet. “Sans, just because their actions will be reset doesn’t mean our friend's feelings are no longer relevent. The pain, it’s real, no matter how long it lasts. I can’t stay here while others are out there suffering… I thought maybe I could… That as long as I had you…” Papyrus shook his head, “I _have_ to protect them. I-It’s my job after all!”

“Pap, _please._ Don’t go…” Papyrus’ resolve faltered. Sans never really asked for anything. Not like this.

“Sans I have to make sure they can't hurt anyone again… that they can’t hurt you again. I have to _try_."

Sans quickly retorted, fears peaking. “Just look at you! You’re clearly terrified of that thing! Whatever it did to you and whatever you’re not telling me- it has you spooked! You don’t have to do _anything_ , you’re not even a Royal Guard yet Pap! Let Undyne handle it. She can protect everyone.” Papyrus gripped the dinner bag tightly at the mention of her name.

Sans brows furrowed when he saw his brother’s expression, _not even that phased him- why?_

“Pap it’s going to kill you.”

After a moment He began walking towards the door.

“Wait.” Sans said shakily. “If I can’t stop you then I might as well go with you… After all two boneheads are better than one, right?” He laughed half-heartedly.

Papyrus whipped around, “No Sans, both of us don’t have to die tonight!”

 Sans started to become irritated, “Wouldn’t our odds be better, especially now that it won’t have the element of surprise?”

“No Sans, you don’t understand… I can’t let you fight them!”

“Well I can’t let _YOU_ fight them!”

Papyrus’ heart sank. He knew there was no way he would be walking out of here alone.

He let out a shaky breath and whispered, "I'm sorry Sans..."

Papyrus spun around, connecting his weapon his San's head. He hated himself for what he was doing. If only Sans had agreed to stay in, he wouldn't have had to raise a hand to his own brother. No one else would be able to protect his brother. Out of all the monsters Papyrus had the most control over his powers, and Sans wasn't going to back down on his own. Papyrus tried to justify the action by saying that it was for his own safety, but Papyrus couldn't even believe _himself_. The guilt would always be there.

Papyrus went to catch Sans but quickly pulled back. He couldn't even bring himself to _touch_ Sans, he felt so vile. The guilt would eat him for that too. _You’re a horrible brother._ He looked back at Sans as he opened the front door and pleaded half-heartedly, "Please forgive me..." Before heading out with haste. 

* * *

The door to the ruins sealed behind the creature. It smiled and wiped their soiled knife off in the snow. It continued on the path to the sentry station where it waited until crunching drew their attention. A cruel smile twisted its way onto their face. _The skeleton._

Papyrus tightened his grip on bone he was wielding.

“So I see you took me up on the offer?” The child chimed.

“NO HUMAN. THERE IS NO OFFER. I CAN'T LET YOU HURT THE PEOPLE I CARE ABOUT. Not this time." The child in front of him tilted its head, almost in taunt.

He let out a shaky breath, "This time…THIS TIME I _WILL_ WIN, AND YOU _WILL_ LEAVE EVERYONE ALONE! I WON'T PLAY YOUR GAME, I-I WILL PROTECT EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THE MONSTERS YOU SLAUGHTERED!” Papyrus charged at the small child and bellowed, “ _THAT INCLUDES MY BROTHER!_ " The child stood still as a trunk, causing Papyrus to easily land a hit. This surprised Papyrus, causing him to falter. The child swung upwards at the tall skeleton, slicing through his body armor. Echoing giggles emerged from the creature. Papyrus quickly moved back, creating distance between them as fear started to take hold. _Did…did it let me hit them so it could get close enough to attack?_ Papyrus held the spot where the knife had hit. _Are they_ _still toying with me?_

* * *

Sans ran. Fear fueled him to move faster, run harder. His eye flickered as he tried and failed to teleport. His magic fizzled. _Damn it, calm down Sans!_ Rage twisted his stomach. His mind still refused to process that Papyrus of all people had knocked him out. He wouldn't allow himself to blame him though. _I can’t believe that thing affected him so much…_ This time that creature is going to pay. Sans finally managed a successful teleportation and landed near his brother’s sentry station. The snow was coming down hard, it was difficult to make anything out. He managed to spot Papyrus' footprints every now and then. He was faithful to his own paths to a fault, very rarely deviating. He followed them with haste towards his own sentry station. That’s when he saw the blood. Sans felt faint. The orange translucency, it was most definitely from Pap’s magic. He looked around wildly. Sans felt the life flow out of him when he noticed a lump in the snow a few yards away. _Oh please no._ Sans walked up to pile and brushed it off. It was a part of Papyrus’ battle body. Despair swirled inside him, stirring up power. He heard noises, following them without hesitation.

 _Papyrus!_ Sans made out their figures through the sheet of white, he saw the creature dart towards his brother, swiping with its dusty knife generously. Sans let out a scream as writhing magic broke through the ground. He slammed the human into a tree far away from Papyrus. A shockwave rippled through his head, causing his headache to thrum harder.

Papyrus had been calculating next move when he heard the terrible scream behind him,  next thing he knew the child had been flung back and his brother appeared in front of him, disheveled. "S-Sans…" Papyrus felt both relieved to see his brother alright and anxious about him waking up before he could get the job done.

 The deafening ringing in Sans’ head overpowered the howling wind. Sans stood between them as the creature started advancing. He struggled to keep focus as it laughed and ran forward causing Sans to fall back close to his brother. "Go home Papyrus. This is my fight now."

Papyrus stood his ground, summoning bones between them, shielding Sans from the human. "No Sans, you can't win this fight! They're too quick, the close combat will-" the child darted around Sans and the bone wall towards him. Papyrus grabbed a second bone and clattered them against the small weapon. The child grinned and rolled back, attempting to jump over the bone wall.

"SANS!" Papyrus grabbed the child, who started stabbing the skeleton’s arm in response, and slung it away. It landed in the snow a couple yards down, seemingly unfazed.

 _Fuck this human_. Sans snarled as he got in between Papyrus and the human once more. He saw the blood seeping out of small wounds on his brother’s arm and cursed again. "It's gonna use us against each other Pap. You gotta go, I can't protect you like this."

Papyrus gripped his hurt arm, "SANS, I CAN'T RUN AWAY! IT'S MY JOB TO PROTECT THESE MONSTERS! TO PROTECT YOU!" Papyrus tried to stand but the pain brought him back down.

 Sans spotted the child darting around them, _This thing has no chill_. He summoned a gaster blaster, causing the human to retreat. A flicker of fear crossed the child’s face when he saw the new weapon. Sans didn’t hesitate to launch blast after blast at the abomination. Several hits landed and Sans watched as anger enveloped the child’s face. It was creepy seeing something normally so small and harmless make a face with such demonic intent. Sans fired again. Rage fueled them as the human dodged and lunged at their attacker. In an attempt to evade, he backed straight into Papyrus leaving them both sprawled on the ground.

Papyrus knew at this rate they would both die. He covered his brother in a last attempt to protect the one thing he loved most. The child was practically foaming at the mouth, it could feel the end just within reach. Unable to hold back fits of laughter as it sliced about the tall skeleton's back. Their distorted face quickly covered in their victim’s blood. Suddenly they stopped, noticing it had become increasingly harder to move.

Sans peered up from inside his brother’s embrace, struggling to sift through the words as the continued pains in his head throbbed with vigor.

"I CAN STILL PROTECT EVERYONE…ESPECIALLY NOW THAT _YOU'RE_ NO LONGER AS FAST AS BEFORE." It was true, the child noticed the intense increase in gravity. It darted back and assessed the changes in its body. Its soul had turned blue. Papyrus stayed where he was, continuing to shield Sans. “Sans…I can hold it off while you get back to town, make sure everyone is evacuated and then…” Papyrus closed his mouth, he knew telling Sans to leave him would only make stay. The child locked eyes with Papyrus. Dread washed through Papyrus as he watched the gears in the human’s mind turn. Suddenly it rushed towards the town. Papyrus hurriedly followed, summoning blue bones about. _Is it trying to force our hand? Or is it trying to keep us here?_ The child whipped around, hurling its knife at Papyrus who was struggling to attack. With a strangled cry Papyrus fell, the knife landing in his shoulder.

“ _THAT_ WAS A BAD MOVE KID.” The child looked over to see Sans making a bee-line towards them, his magic spurting in rage. Sans summoned row after row of blue bone attacks, attempting to trap the murdering brat. The child sloppily dodged the bones, each one grazing them every so often. “WITH NO KNIFE YOU HAVE NO WAY OF ATTACKING.” Sans started laughing, he had thrown in a regular attack hidden with the blue, inadvertently causing itself damage. They were trapped. Blue bones stretched around the child. They glowered at the skeleton as he began laughing harder. Sans placed a hand on his knee, why did he find this so funny? Was it because he finally had the upper hand, or was it because in the end the thing would probably end up resetting anyway?

Papyrus winced as he tried to inch closer, _he’s losing it…_ “Sans…” Papyrus whispered, resting both damaged arms around himself.

Suddenly the child picked up Sans’ bone and ran through the blue ones. Papyrus watched in horror as the child’s health was quickly drained before it leap at the smaller skeleton, his own attack used against him.

“ _NO!!”_ Papyrus’ throat strained from the breaking in his voice. He fell forward into the snow as he heard his brother shriek in pain. They both fell back in front of Papyrus. The child landed atop Sans’ head, the bone sunk deep into his brother’s socket. Papyrus started whimpering Sans’ name as the human slowly, _sickly_ , pulled he bone back out. Blood covered the weapon, and pooled out of Sans’ socket.

The child strode towards Papyrus, the bone dragged behind them, leaving a red trail. Papyrus struggled to sit up, his whole body shaking. The child leaned in, face inches from his. They curled a hand around the hilt of the knife. “ _I’ll be taking this back now.”_

Slowly, _painfully_ they dragged the knife across Papyrus’ body. Papyrus could hear the blood dripping into the snow under him as the knife cut through each rib. One by one. Suddenly the knife was ripped downward, connecting with his soul. Papyrus let out a gasp as the magic expelled from his being. The child stood, twirling the knife in its hand. _What more could it possibly want?_ It grabbed Papyrus’ face, its knife dangerously close to his eyes. “Isn’t this what you wanted?”

“S-stop…” The child turned around to see a Sans on his stomach, hand weakly raised in attack. Bones slowly rose out of the snow towards the child, they were small and pathetic. The human dropped its grip on Papyrus and stood hovering over Sans. He coughed as more blood pooled out of his mouth, the snow slowly melting under the red. The child stepped on Sans’ hand, stopping the summoning. Papyrus felt pinpricks make their way up his body as he started to disintegrate. The child raised the bone over Sans head.

“ _PLEASE-_ CHILD I… SURELY THIS IS ENOUGH! EVEN NOW YOU HAVE A CHOICE… PLEASE DON’T… IT’S OVER HUMAN, Y-YOU’VE ALREADY WON!” Papyrus kept inching closer at each pause, strength leaving him each time. The child kept their position, staring at the small disintegrating skeleton beneath. Slowly, it lowered the bone and walked away from the two monsters. Papyrus watched the human as it silently made its way to Snowdin. “…THANK YOU.” Papyrus said after it, not once did they look back.

Papyrus quickly turned back to Sans, who was disintegrating at an alarming rate. “B-BROTHER…” Papyrus sobbed as he struggled the last few crawls. He grasped Sans tightly, feeling a few of his ribs break off under the weight. He cried onto Sans head, whispering over and over, “Sans I’m so sorry.”

Slowly, hazily, Sans opened his one good eye. He watched as the light from Papyrus’ soul faded in and out while the cage holding it slowly dissolved into the snow. He weakly wrapped a hand around whatever of Papyrus was still left, before that too, disappeared.


	4. Death (Part 3)

Papyrus found himself sitting in bed, once more staring at the wall, mind completely blank. An alarming beeping pulled him out of his trance. _OH IT’S WAY TOO LATE IN THE MORNING! HOW DID I NOT NOTICE THE TIME?_ Papyrus swung out of bed and changed into his normal guard attire, admiring himself in the full length mirror attached to his closet door. He ran a hand over the plate, tracing the path the knife had taken. _PERHAPS I SHOULD MAKE SANS ONE OF THESE, MAYBE HE WILL BE MORE MOTIVATED IF HE TOO, WEARS A UNIFORM!_ Papyrus smiled to himself before turning on step towards his door. He paused, intrusive thoughts once more burning in his mind. Papyrus gripped his chestplate, pondering on what he should do about the human. He made his way into Sans’ room, opening the door a fraction. He saw Sans staring at the floor, a sliver of light made its way into the room through the window. Sans expression was blank, almost like he was deep in thought…or not thinking at all. The door squeaked as Papyrus entered, causing Sans to look up, white dots reappearing in his eyes.

The two broke eye contact. An awkward air filtering through.

“How’s your arm?”

Papyrus stood for a minute bewildered before he realized Sans meant from the reset. “I’M PERFECTLY OKAY! NOTHING LEFT BUT THE MEMORIES!” Papyrus laughed, hoping downplaying it would help. When Sans didn’t respond, he continued. “H-HOWS YOUR EYE?”

Sans lightened up, placing a hand over his socket. “Oh, heh heh…I’ve had worse.”

Papyrus flinched, unsure what he meant. Sans quickly back peddled, seeing the horrified expression on his brother’s face. “I just meant…it looked worse than it was is all.” Sans shrugged. Papyrus knelt next to Sans’ bed.

Papyrus wrung his hands. “AND…HOW IS YOUR HEAD?”

“My head?” Sans blinked at him. _Oh…_ “Bro you didn’t even knock me out. I was just pretending to be asleep.” For a second Papyrus had whole heartedly believed him. “SANS! DON’T PLAY DUMB I WAS SERIOUSLY WORRIED!”

“Nah Pap, you hit like a Moldsmal. I’m totally fine.” Papyrus eyed Sans until he decided he was content. Sans looked down nervously, feeling guilt from his unreasonableness earlier. “Hey Papyrus, uh…If you want to go check on everyone, I won’t stop you. Sorry about telling you off.”

Papyrus smiled. “MAYBE LATER BROTHER.”

“Alright well,” Sans got up, stretching, and headed for the door. “I think I’m ready for breakfast.”

“WAIT! SANS…NOTHING WAS ACCOMPLISHED BY ME KEEPING THINGS TO MYSELF.” Papyrus glanced at the floor. “I…I THINK I’D LIKE TO TALK ABOUT IT NOW.” Sans sat back down and patiently waited, making sure Papyrus knew he had his full attention. 

 

* * *

 

_The child walked past the skeleton, throwing the knife into the snow in front of the monster. Papyrus sobbed, the emptiness inside him growing with each particle of dust that fell. “W-WHY?!” Papyrus demanded, searching the child’s face for a sign of reasoning. The child frowned when Papyrus ignored the weapon at his feet._

_“Pick up the knife.”_

_Papyrus noticed the knife for the first time, staring at it in horror. His brother’s blood still coating it. He stood, stepping around it. The child curled its hands tightly, frustrated by its manipulation failing._

_“Y-YOU DIDN’T HAVE TO KILL HIM! SANS- SANS IS HARMLESS, A LAZYBONES! WHAT DID YOU GAIN BY HURTING HIM?”_

_The human blinked at the emotional monster. Why was this one so different? They weren’t scared or angry like the others. “I wanted to see what would happen.” The child picked up the knife and turned, smiling,_ soon he'll be like the others.

_Papyrus stood there dumbfounded as the child walked away. It felt like his whole system was shutting down. It was so hard to think. Papyrus turned and picked up his brother’s hoodie. It was covered in dust and blood, but Papyrus would never clean it, it felt wrong to do so. Papyrus tied the jacket around his waist and followed after the child._

_It took much longer than Papyrus thought to find the child again. It was eerily quiet. The closer Papyrus got to town the worse he felt._ Where was everyone? _Papyrus spotted Dogamy through the trees and sprinted closer._ The human! _Papyrus halted when noticed the fight. Dogamy was snarling wildly as Dogressa swung her ax at the child’s head._

_“WAIT! STOP!” Papyrus tried to intervene. Dogressa kicked Papyrus out of the way, and lunged at the human._

_Dogamy shouted at Papyrus who had landed in one of the surrounding snow poffs. “Papyrus! Go get Undyne! The demon is much more powerful than we thought!”_

_“THEY KILLED DOGGO,” Dogressa swung her ax across, nicking the child, “AND GREATER DOG,” she wailed, sinking her ax into snow where the child had been._

_“And Lesser Dog!” Dogamy added as he attacked while his wife situated her weapon. Papyrus had gotten up, ready to run to Undyne’s. “CHILD,_ PLEASE, _I’M SURE THERE ARE OTHER WAYS OF GETTING WHAT YOU WANT! THERE’S NO NEED FOR SUCH VIOLENCE-” Papyrus flinched at Dogressa’s sudden shriek. The child twisted the knife in her chest, causing her soul to shatter._

_“DOGRESSA!!” Dogamy howled, tears wetting his fur. He tightened his grip on his weapon and spat through his teeth, “HOW COULD YOU! HOW COULD YOU!”_

_The child pointed at the upset hound and looked straight at Papyrus who was at a loss for words. “That is what I want.” Papyrus’ eyes widened as Dogamy swung his ax, blindly charging at the human. Dogamy didn’t stand a chance. Papyrus watched in horror as he was cut down in front of him, a new coat of dust covering the human. Papyrus felt sick. How could the human do this? Papyrus was taken from his thoughts as the child started walking away._

_“WAIT! WHAT DO YOU MEAN THAT IS WHAT YOU WANT? DO YOU WANT SOMEONE TO FIGHT FOR YOU? IS IT…IS IT THAT YOU JUST WANT A FRIEND?”_

_The child froze. Painful silence filled the air._

_“W-WAIT!” Papyrus called as the human began moving again. It was hard to track them through the heavy snowfall._

_Papyrus couldn’t find the human anywhere in Snowdin. Everyone seemed to have evacuated. Papyrus decided it was time to get with Undyne and decide their next move. Papyrus suddenly stopped, turning to look at their house. The lights were still on. He kept walking._

_Papyrus pulled out his cell. Undyne answered after the first ring._

_“PAPYRUS OH MY GOD ARE YOU OKAY??”_

_“Y-YES… BUT THE DOGS THEY’RE ALL…” Papyrus shuffled quietly._

_“…I see.” Undyne said, resigning. “Pap, listen. I need you to get to Alphys and make sure everyone gets evacuated safely.”_

_Papyrus straightened, “W-WHAT? NO! I CAN HELP YOU, I CAN GET THROUGH TO THE HUMAN!”_

_“Papyrus. This thing has killed who knows how many monsters, SEVERAL being our fellow guardsman, there is no getting through to them. They had several chances to stop and they made their decision. Now they have to live with it.” There was a flicker on the line. “And so do we.”_

_Papyrus curled his free hand and stared at the ground. After a moment he whispered, “Sans is gone…” He heard Undyne breathe through the line. “…Pap. I’m so sorry.”_

_“Please be careful Undyne, I don’t want to lose any more people I care about.”_

_Undyne laughed. “Geeze kid, I’m not going anywhere! I still have at least two cookbooks worth of training left for you!”_

_Papyrus smiled. “I’M GOING TO HOLD YOU TO THAT!”_

_But he couldn’t. By the time Papyrus had evacuated everyone along with Alphys, the child had reached the castle. Papyrus stood before the thrown room, now he was the only one standing between the child and King Asgore._

_“That guard. The fish. She was boring.” Papyrus stared at the child, willing his anger to settle as he clenched his hands._

_“SHE WAS MY FRIEND.”_

_“I wonder what would have happened if we killed you first.” Papyrus’ heart dropped._

_“…WHY DIDN’T YOU KILL ME? YOU KILLED ALL THE OTHER GUARDS, WHY DIDN’T YOU KILL ME? ARE YOU GOING TO KILL ME NOW? YOU DON’T HAVE TO, YOU STILL HAVE A CHOICE…PERHAPS IF YOU HAD GOTTEN TO KNOW ALL OF MY FRIENDS, YOU COULD HAVE BEEN FRIENDS WITH THEM TOO! I’M SURE MY BROTHER WOULD HAVE BEEN HAPPY BEING FRIENDS WITH YOU.”_

_“Your brother was boring.” Papyrus flinched. “You’re not boring. But you’re starting to be.”_

_Papyrus deflated. “I STILL DON’T UNDERSTAND.”_

_The child walked into the throne room. Papyrus swiftly blocked their path, arms outstretched. “I-I CAN’T LET YOU FIGHT ASGORE.”_

_The human watched as Papyrus’ arms shook._

_“HE COULD KILL YOU, PLEASE HUMAN, NO MORE VIOLENCE!” The child’s brow twitched. It bared its knife at the skeleton._

_“I carved the gills out of your friend, she spouted about her friends stopping me but look at you. Shivering and refusing to fight. She died for nothing. And all those mutts, you did that. You were too much of a pansy to fight me then too. What will it take for you finally do your job guardsman? I already killed your brother…or was that too much for you? Maybe I should go back and fight him instead.”_

_“G-Go back?” Papyrus dropped his arms and knelt in front of the child. He tried to place a hand on their shoulder. Surprised, the human slashed at him, cutting through his glove._

_“You don’t know and yet you still won’t fight?” The child took a defensive step back. “This whole time you thought everyone really was dead? Unbelievable. How ignorant can you be? Even your own brother knew.”_

_Papyrus held his bleeding hand. “Sans knew? What are you talking about,” Papyrus scooted towards the child, “are you saying they’re not really gone? Sans is not dead?”_

_The human watched as hope returned to the monster’s eyes. He scrunched up his face and spat, “Of course he’s dead, I gutted that stupid creature in front of you!”_

_Papyrus flinched, tears pooled in his sockets._

_The child relaxed. “Don’t worry little monster, this reset is almost over. Next time I’ll kill your brother, your friends, AND you. How does that sound?” The child thought for a moment before adding, “Tell you what, if you fight me next time I’ll even leave your brother alone like I did with you this time. That way we both get what we want.” They grinned confidently. Papyrus felt his soul escape his body as he pictured Sans where he was now._

* * *

 

Sans noticed Papyrus was staring at the wall for an unusually long time. He placed a hand on his arm, “Pap?”

 “I’M SORRY SANS…”

“FOR EVERYTHING…I-I COULDN’T EVEN PROTECT YOU! NOT EVEN A SINGLE MONSTER FROM THE HUMAN! I WAS FOOL FOR THINKING I COULD SAVE EVERYONE. I JUST CAUSED YOU MORE PAIN IN THE PROCESS.”

Sans put a hand on Papyrus’ shoulder. “Pap no. You did amazing, I know you did. You were so close to getting through to them, I bet next time you’ll do it for sure!”

Sans pulled Papyrus into a hug. “I’m sorry you had to go through that Pap…there’s no way I would have been able to stay sane like you. You really are the coolest bro ever.”

Sans heard a muffled “nyeh heh” and an “of course” through his shirt and smiled.

“Sans…would you like some breakfast? I was thinking of making something different today.”

Sans got up and let out a hearty breath. “Sure bro.”

The brothers sat in silence. The kitchen felt bright and warm…and safe. Papyrus wondered whether they should talk about the human or just pretend like nothing happened…like he had yesterday. _Or was that technically today?_ He was afraid of causing Sans more grief, who seemed to be in much lower spirits than before, consumed by his own thoughts.

“What’s up Pap?”

Papyrus made a strange disgruntled noise. “I thought these cakes were supposed to look like cakes…they do not.”

Sans peered into the pan. “They look like if a tortilla and a cake had a baby.” He chuckled.

“SANS! …Actually, you’re not wrong. But they are much flatter than I thought.” Sans noticed the uncertainty on Papyrus’ face.

“Everything you make is amazing, I’m sure it tastes great Pap.” Papyrus smiled and set the flat bready food on Sans’ plate.

“DON’T YOU DARE!” Papyrus snatched the ketchup bottle out of Sans’ hand and quickly replaced it with syrup. Sans simply shrugged and poured the syrup on his meal.

“What did you say these were called again?”

“UNDYNE SAID THEY WERE PAN-CAKES. I THINK THEY SHOULD RENAME THEM TO...FLAT...CAKES?"

“Tortilla cakes.”

“BREAKFAST BREAD?”

They both grunted, unsatisfied with the names, and started eating.

“So what are we doing today Pap?”

Papyrus paused, surprised by Sans choice of topic. “PROBABLY TRAINING WITH UNDYNE. SINCE...TO EVERYONE ELSE IT'S JUST A NORMAL DAY.”

Another pause.

“Actually Pap…I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind dropping something off at Alphys’ for me.”

Papyrus leered at Sans. “SANS! ARE YOU THAT LAZY YOU CAN'T EVEN DELIVER SOMETHING YOURSELF?”

Sans smiled. “Nah Pap you got it wrong, It’s a _very_ important package. I can only trust a royal guard such as yourself to deliver it safely!”

“WOWIE SANS! I DON’T KNOW WHETHER TO BE IMPRESSED OR SKEPTICAL!” Papyrus snatched the small package up right when Sans pulled it out of his hoodie.  “DON’T WORRY BROTHER, THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL KEEP IT SAFE!”

“I have no doubt Pap, Alphys is expecting it so make sure you head straight there.”

Papyrus was taken aback, “SANS, HOW COULD YOU THINK THAT _I_ , THE GREAT PAPYRUS WOULD LOLYGAG ON SUCH AN IMPORTANT MISSION.”

“Of course not bro, that’s my job.”

Papyrus threw another flat cake onto Sans’ plate and called out the door, “RIGHT YOU ARE BROTHER!”

Sans was left alone in the kitchen, somehow the room felt colder than it had a minute ago. Sans poked the cake with his fork, his appetite having left with Papyrus.

A foreboding cut through the silence. Sans shivered, his gaze far away. Slowly he relaxed and placed his cell on the table. Since Papyrus was in Hotland, he wouldn’t feel the human’s presence. It took ages for Sans to move from the table, his conscience fighting over his actions. Now that he knew what Papyrus had gone through, he was having second doubts. It was such a big risk, did Sans really want to put him through that again? But…if this was his only option. He had to be sure it would work, he couldn’t live knowing Papyrus had lost hope. Hell, he had enough hope for the both of them. Sans clenched his fist. He was doing this for himself too. Sans marched out the door, turning all the lights off as he went. He had made his decision.

He couldn’t help but feel guilty about not leaving a note, but if everything went according to plan, he wouldn’t need one. For the first time since the human appeared, Sans felt calm, peaceful even. Perhaps the quiet town helped, even the wind was silent. More than anything though, was the knowledge that Papyrus was nowhere near. Sans wouldn’t have to worry about his bro charging in and sacrificing himself, or having to watch Sans die. Sans didn’t want that. He knew seeing it had wrecked him. Each time his smile lowered, subtly, but the change was there. He hated that he was the reason Papyrus’ light had begun to fade. Along with the awful thought of if only he didn’t love Sans so much, if he didn’t care so much. It would make everything so much easier.

_Including this._

The child met Sans at the bridge.

“Where’s the other one?”

“ _Papyrus,”_ Sans hissed.

The human stared at Sans, void of any emotion.

“You know,” Sans began, “my bro thought you could be reasoned with. He thought that just because you didn’t mutilate me in the last fight that somehow that meant that you could be saved… Maybe that’s true, but frankly I could care less if someone like you was saved… You’ve already made your bed, every time you walk through those doors, every time you take the generosity of that sweet old lady for granted. Your bloodlust… it’s _insatiable_ , isn’t it?” Sans grit his teeth, words almost poisonous. There was a pause as the child scanned the horizon.

“Don’t worry, Pap isn’t here. _That means nothing’s stopping me from killing you_.”

The child was thrown forward as bones connected with their back. They tumbled onto the bridge, wood tearing into their arms. They sat up, breath taken from their lungs. Sans summoned a blaster and chuckled confidently, “Just let me know when you’ve had enough.” The human quickly pulled out their knife as the gaster blaster destroyed the posts keeping up the bridge.  They plunged the knife deep into the wood plank as the bridge was sent cascading into the cliff. Sans hummed disappointedly when he noticed the child hadn’t fallen to their agonizing death. He teleported to the other side and peered down at them as they struggled to keep grip.

“Well well. After all the time and devotion I’ve given you the least you could have done was _fallen_ for me.” The child ignored the skeleton and continued to climb up the planks.

“Actually, this is better.” Sans summoned a few bones and started launching them the child. “Ten points if I hit your face- oh wow. That was uncanny.” The child covered their bleeding face, murderously glowering at the taunting monster.

Suddenly Sans severed one of the last remaining posts, causing the child to swing and twirl about the cliff. Fear betrayed their apathetic image as fell back, arms flailing as they tried to connect their knife with a new home. Sans watched as several wooden planks splintered on the ground bellow. For a moment he imagined the child being one of them.

“I bet I have your attention now, don’t I?” Sans grabbed the last remaining tie to the post and knelt. “I don’t know why you keep resetting, I can only imagine it’s cause you enjoy the killing. Enjoy seeing what sort of people we are. I know you’re slowly getting more and more bored with each reset. I’ve been watching you. Each reset slowly gets shorter and shorter. I’m sure soon you’ll get tired and leave… Unfortunately I have no idea when that’ll be…or what state we’ll be in when you do. So…I’m going to make you a deal.” Sans teased the rope loose, making sure the brat knew the position it was in, and just how serious Sans was.

“I bet even if you die you’ll be able to reset. At least…that’s how it worked with that flower. But the thing is…if you have the same powers, then that means you too, feel pain.” The human didn’t respond, only clung tighter to the destroyed bridge. Sans used his magic to pull off each plank, _slowly_ , one by one. Sans had the human’s full attention now.

“The deal is, whatever you’re trying to do here, whether it’s killing all, some, or none of us…I won’t stand in your way. Hell, I’ll even help you if that means you’ll leave sooner. But…” Sans took a shaky breath, “…whenever you do decide to kill us in this reset, you kill my brother first.”

The child’s eyes widened, a smile twitching at the corners of its mouth. Its guttural voice echoed through the chasm, “What a sick freak.” Sans’ grip on the rope faltered, the child’s stomach dropping in response.

“ _Let me finish._ ” he growled hollowly, “I don’t want Papyrus to go through what you put him through ever again. You almost destroyed him! I’ll make sure you never leave him here alone again, even… Even if that means Pap has to die.” Sans magic grabbed the plank the child was clinging to, the plank whining at the sudden increase in force. “Now. The last thing we’ll cover is how you’ll be leaving this place. Whenever you get bored and decide to abandon us here, just remember to be polite and reset before you leave. I’ll be watching you to make sure you keep your end of the deal. And if you don’t…” Sans tightened his magic grip. The plank splintered, dropping parallel to the only rope holding it. The child struggled to not to slip as it swung, its feet dangling freely. “ _You’re really not going to like what you find.”_ Sans dropped the rope, briefly watching as child flailed wildly as they dropped into the chasm. Sans turned, suddenly dragged down by his conscience.

 _At least…at least this way Pap has a chance of getting through to them in each reset…At least he won’t have to watch his friends die…watch me die..._ Sans pulled a shaking hand to his chest. _It’s the only way. There’s nothing else you could do!_ Sans pulled his hood up. Suddenly he felt very alone.

Sans blinked slowly, he curled his hands around the snow. _The snow?_

Sans lifted his face up. _How did I get on the ground?_

His head pounded, he felt around till he came in contact with a splintered crack on his skull. _What the heck, was I hit by a rock or something?_

He turned his head back, life leaving him as it clicked.

The child hovered over him, rock brought up into position. Sans quickly swiveled his feet around, knocking the child into the snow next to him. Sans trembled as he ran to the cliff edge. “ _W-What?!”_

Sans looked down bewildered. One of the few remaining planks hooked itself onto a protruding rock, easily letting the child free-climb back up with its knife. Sans’ eyes darted back to the human, giving him just enough time to see the rock projected at his face. He fell back and watched as the large chunk sailed into the chasm where the child had been moments ago. Sans, a little freaked out, quickly fired an onslaught of bones at the human. Sans hissed as sharp pain flickered through his head, his vision blotting. The child ducked under Sans’ attack and collided with the small skeleton. For a moment Sans was terrified, freefalling back before managing a teleport back atop the peak. Sans had just landed when he was pulled down once more. His vision cleared enough to catch the knife pinning him down, narrowly missing his last rib. Right before Sans could grab it, his wrist was roughly twisted upwards.  Their body shuddered as it echoed laughter. They subtly pulled the knife out of Sans’ jacket, dragging it lightly across Sans’s ribcage. Sans shivered as he stared into the child’s void eyes, the blackness stealing any lingering thoughts Sans had. The knife paused over Sans’ soul. The moment felt like an eternity.

The child pinned Sans down with thier knee, knife digging deeper into Sans' chest as the child leaned in close to his face. Sans let out pained noises as the blade slowly cut forward, matching the arc of the child’s movements. They whispered into the skeleton’s ear. Sans’ eyes widened right before the knife violently carved through his ribs, blood spraying outwards in a curve.

The human sat up, admiring how the red splatter mirrored a wing coming from Sans’ body.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if the last few chapters feel a little disconnected from the first few, it's amazing what a difference in writing 1-2 years can bring.


	5. Promises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is it. The final Chapter. Sorry it took me so long to get you guys here, hope it was worth the wait!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a quick heads up that this chapter lightly implies past suicide, stay safe readers.

Papyrus, having made it to Hotland, repeatedly rang the doorbell at the lab. “DR. ALPHYS! I HAVE A VERY IMPORTANT PACKAGE FOR YOU! DR. ALPHYYYYS!” Papyrus continued to draw out her name as the doorbell rang with fervor.

Alphys hastily opened the lab door, “W-what is it Papyrus?…P-Papyrus!”

Papyrus ceased his attack on the doorbell and cleared his throat. “I HAVE THAT PACKAGE SANS SENT YOU.”

Alphys fixed her glasses, “A-A package? From Sans?” Papyrus handed Alphys the small brown enclosure. She walked hastily inside as she started unwrapping it. Papyrus followed, his smile growing wider the deeper he got.

“SANS WAS WISE TO TRUST THE MOST HANDSOME AND SKILLFUL GUARD TO DELIVER IT, THAT BEING ME OF COURSE. YOU KNOW WHO ELSE IS GREAT? YOU, DR. ALPHYS. SUCH AN INTELLIGENT MIND SUCH AS YOURSELF MUST HAVE BEEN HONED FROM YEARS OF MASTER PUZZLERY.”

“Oh?” Alphys quickly looked back to see the skeleton enthusiastically perusing her equipment, searching for all things related to her robotic celebrity. Alphys barely registered the compliment as she tried to make sense of the items Sans had sent her.

“I, I don’t understand…” She whispered as she flipped through a small black journal. Alphys opened the small folded paper, hoping to find Sans’ purpose in sending this to her. “ _Oh God.”_

“HOW INTERESTING…” Papyrus said to himself as he read over the blue prints for Mettaton. Papyrus called over the railing at the scientist bellow, “HEY DR. ALPHYS, I DIDN’T KNOW METTATON ALSO HAD A BATTLE BODY!”

Alphys' hands flew frantically over the keys, several cameras popping up on screen. “Not there. Not there… _where_?”

Something caught Alphys’ eye. She slowly moved to select the camera near the right bottom of the screen. The outskirts of Snowdin. The images danced on the doctor’s glasses, shielding her expression from the on-looking skeleton.

 _What do I do?_ Panic started seeping from her scales, everything felt itchy. She scrambled for the notebook, rereading the letter once more. _I-I can’t do this Sans, I’m not…I’m not…_

“WHAT’S THAT?” Alphys jumped at the sudden voice behind her.

“U-U-Uh…” she stuttered, quickly slamming buttons beside her, shifting screens. The papers fell and the book tumbled to the floor.

“DR. ALPHYS ARE YOU OKAY? YOU’RE SHAKING QUITE A BIT.” Alphys stared at the sweet, concerned expression on the skeleton’s face, his head slightly tilted. Her vision was swarming. It felt like sweat was trying to drown her. She was frozen.

“ISN’T THIS…” Alphys looked down to see Papyrus looking at the fallen papers, a stack of them already neatly tucked under his arm. _It was Sans’ letter. He was reading Sans’ letter._ Adrenaline rushed through Alphys as she snatched the letter out of his grip, all she could reply with was a misplaced “Ah.”

“WAIT!” Papyrus followed the paper, rising from his kneeled position. “THAT SAID SOMETHING ABOUT THE RESETS, DID SANS FIND SOMEWAY TO STOP THEM? WHY DID HE SEND THEM TO YOU, DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THEM TOO?”

Alphys gripped the paper tighter, the barrage of questions threatening to send her spiraling. “I-I can’t, S-Sans told me not to…” Aphys was taken aback. Papyrus’ expression a mix of betrayal and confusion. Alphys tried to say something, anything, that might help. “I’m sorry Papyrus, b-but, it’s really not something you would gain by seeing. Sans is trying to protect you-“

“AND I’M TRYING TO PROTECT HIM!” Anger flashed across the skeleton’s face, surprising Alphys. After a moment Papyrus whispered. “I’m sorry.” Alphys saw that his hands, too, were shaking.

 “I THOUGHT…I THOUGHT SANS HAD FINALLY…I THOUGHT WE WERE…OKAY. WHY IS HE STILL KEEPING THINGS FROM ME?” Papyrus was staring at the floor. Alphys couldn’t tell if he was crying or not. She placed a tender claw on his hand, her empathy getting the better of her.

“Papyrus…Sans is just trying to make sure you stay safe and happy. He cares about you a lot.” Alphys drops her gaze to the bathroom door. “…Some things are hard to talk about, even to our most important people. Sometimes it’s because they are our most important people that we can’t tell them.”

“THAT DOESN’T MAKE SENSE!” Papyrus blubbered, “SOMEONE BEING OUR MOST IMPORTANT PERSON MEANS BEING ABLE TO TELL THEM ANYTHING, NO MATTER WHAT! BECAUSE THAT PERSON’S MOST IMPORTANT PERSON IS THEM! YOU ONLY GET TO SPEND SO LONG WITH THEM, AND YOU DON’T KNOW WHEN THEY’LL BE GONE SO YOU HAVE TO MAKE SURE TO TELL THEM BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE, CAUSE WHAT IF YOU COULD HAVE HELPED THEM BUT YOU DIDN’T KNOW UNTIL IT WAS TOO LATE!”

There was an awkward pause.

Alphys could tell that Papyrus was speaking from experience. The past conversation had all but told her that Papyrus had been through a reset himself. She couldn’t keep these things from him, even if it meant that Papyrus would change, or that Sans would be angry.

“Here.” Alphys handed the paper back to Papyrus as he tried clean up his face. ”THANK YOU DR. ALPHYS, IF SANS GETS ANGRY AT YOU, YOU CAN JUST TELL HIM I FORCED YOU TO.”

“I don’t think he would believe that…” She replied half-heartedly. Alphys sat at the monitor, her heart cracking as she spied the camera from Snowdin hiding in the corner.

“WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?”

Alphys looked back up. She instantly regretted it when Papyrus made eye contact with her, his face horrified. Quickly Papyrus tried to make sense of Sans letter when Alphys didn’t respond. His heart skipped.

> _Hey Al, sorry I have to drop this on you out of the blue, so I’ll just cut to the chase. The human’s power is related to the resets. I’m not sure how, maybe they can control the timeline to some extent, but either way, we’re all screwed._
> 
> _It’s become apparent to me that uh, no one in the underground can defeat it. And by defeat I mean kill it. Permanently. Even if we do it’ll just spring back sometime earlier in the timeline like some demonic weed. Papyrus remembers each reset now, and I’m starting to think that human somehow stole its powers from that golden flower._
> 
> _I don’t want to watch Papyrus become like me, I’ve spent so long trying to protect him from this. So I guess, this time I’ll actually do something about it. Pretty shocking right? But anyway, my plan is too extreme and probably a bad idea, but it’s the only one I got. That’s why I sent Pap to you. So uh, keep him there while I do my thing will ya? He doesn’t know what I’m doing, in order for this to work I need to keep it that way._
> 
> _If everything goes smoothly then we’ll all wake up tomorrow right as rain. If not…well… you should probably evacuate everyone as soon as possible. After that everything’s up to you Al. I left all my notes with you in case worse comes to worse. I know you can do it Al, you’re a great scientist. No one else has to die this time._

“WHAT IS HE PLANNING ALPHYS? WHY DOESN’T HE WANT ME TO KNOW?”

“P-Papyrus, I-I really don’t know what Sans is planning…H-He didn’t tell me, I swear!” She turned around and pulled up a time sheet. It looked like roots were covering the screen. Each one colored differently and converging from a central location. “This is all the information w-we have on past resets.”

There were so many. So many resets. Papyrus stood dumbstruck. Sans had said that it had been going on for a while but this was a horrifying amount. Each branch had its own set of information, a set of outcomes, factors that may have influenced that timeline.

“WAIT, WHY DO A LOT OF THE TIMELINES TURN GRAY?”

“T-Those are times were Sans…stopped giving information.”

“WHY WOULD HE DO THAT?”

“Well, P-Pap…Sometimes the timelines can be e-extremely hard and can take a toll on your psych. A lot of those timelines were ones were y-you...died.”

Papyrus was silent. He looked on with sorrow. _THERE ARE SO MANY..._ Papyrus found their current timeline and traced it back to the last few, seeing how short the branches grew. _Those were the times me and Sans fought the human._ Papyrus’ heart dropped as he spotted the long timeline where he was one of the last monsters left.

“ALPHYS, YOU COLLECT INFORMATION ABOUT EACH RESET RIGHT? SO YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO PULL UP EACH TIMELINE WHERE ANY ONE MONSTER DIED YES?”

“Uh, y-yes I suppose I would be able to.”

“COULD YOU PULL UP TIMELINES WHERE SANS DIES AND I LIVE?” Alphys complied, puzzled.

"T-This might take a bit since the computer has to search through each timeline we ha-" Alphys was interrupted by a noise on the screen. 

_Search_Results: 32_

“WAIT, DR. ALPHYS, WHY DO I ONLY REMEMBER ONE OF THEM?”

“B-Because each monster is different, some never make the connection with r-resets, and some, like Sans, remember too easily. You know, h-he used to study this in theory, so it would make sense that he was one of the first monsters too realize w-what was happening."

For a moment Papyrus felt proud of his brother.

“CAN YOU PULL UP TIMELINES WHERE I DIE AND SANS LIVES?” Alphys’ fingers twitch on the keyboard. She hesitates for a moment.

The air is heavy as the computer takes several minutes to load. Alphys can hear her hearbeat in her ears, well aware of what the results will show. When the monitor updates Papyrus steps back, taking in just how many there are. His legs feel weak. He remembers how hopeless he felt, how alone he was when Sans died in his timeline. And there were over  _hundreds_ of timelines were Sans had to repeat the same exact situation. Sans had suffered so much, why did he downplay his problems so much?

“DO... DO YOU GUYS KEEP RECORD OF WHO KILLED EACH MONSTER.”

Alphys turned to him, a pit in her stomach forming. “Papyru-“

“I NEED TO SEE IT. _PLEASE ALPHYS.”_

Alphys was unsure were he was going, she was afraid she might be causing the change Sans was so worried about. But after seeing the determination in Papyrus’ face, she was sure he would find out one way or another. This was better than having him find out on his own. 

Papyrus brought his hand to his mouth. The majority of them seemed to be from the reset holder, newest and previous. Whoever the previous holder was, Sans seemed to have destroyed them a handful of times, even Undyne a few times. Something wasn't right though, the math was off. 

“WAIT. ALPHYS WHY ARE THERE MORE DEATH COUNTS TOTAL THAN THERE ARE RESET HOLDER KILLS?”

Alphys fidgeted uncomfortably. She wasn’t sure if it was her place to say. “D-During timelines where you uh…d-die, it can be extremely difficult for Sans as you saw with the greyed out timelines. B-but sometimes, it just gets too much, everything is so quiet, the underground too empty. Sometimes it feels like all h-hope is gone, that each day is just a... a new day to suffer.” Alphys stared at the leftover death count, feeling a sense of shame. “Sometimes, you get so impatient for a reset to h-happen, to see your loved ones again, that you... y-you...” A large lump found its way in Alphys' throat. She couldn't find it in herself to finish the sentence.

Papyrus’ eyes widened. He grasped and twisted his fingers through his gloves and whispered with horrified realization. “ _No…”_

Alphys closed out of the timeline, inadvertently revealing the Snowdin cam.

Papyrus found himself once more staring at the wall in his room. He struggled to remember which memories were real. He wondered how many times he would wake up staring at his wall. To tell the truth, Papyrus didn’t even remember waking up let alone falling asleep. _That makes sense, I must have not fallen asleep._ Papyrus felt like he never wanted to move again. It was too agonizing to walk past Sans’ room, to stare at the empty couch, the empty chair in the kitchen, to look at the sock, now a permanent decoration in their house, one that Sans would never pick up. Papyrus felt sick. _Why can’t the human find a way to reach their goal without killing anyone? There has to be a solution that allows everyone to get what they want._

Papyrus’ heart sank as the memories from the last reset without Sans occurred. The human was merely looking for excitement in their lives, they were bored. Papyrus had spent his entire life in that timeline trying to reason with the child, to show them that there were other ways to get excitement out of life. Papyrus remembered how that was to no avail. They were uninterested in puzzles, japes, or cooking. Papyrus was never able to find anything that gave the human the excitement it needed.

A memory flooded back into Papyrus's mind.

> _“Papyrus…_ please _.” Alphys sat a microwaved bowl of noodles in front of Papyrus. “Y-You’ve been watching that for hours.” She rested her claws on his shoulder. “You need to eat something, you need to go home and rest.” Papyrus sat in silence, circulating through the underground cameras again. His expression was blank, Alphys wondered if he even heard her._

“That’s right…” Papyrus said to no one, _Alphys evacuated everyone last night after…after Sans…_ Papyrus let out a shaky sigh. _Alphys said that the human disappeared, I can’t remember what I did after I left Hotland,_ Papyrus rested a hand on his face, _Alphys told me she would call if they showed back up._

 Papyrus tried. He tried to stay strong, but the sobbing returned as he held himself tightly. _I DON'T KNOW IF I CAN DO THIS AGAIN!_ Papyrus abruptly paused. _This...This is why Sans has so much trouble getting out of bed._ Papyrus felt a wave of shame fall over him for taking Sans' laziness at face value. 

Papyrus must have fallen asleep because next thing he knew he was lying on his side, dazed. _DRATS, WASTED MY WHOLE DAY._ Suddenly Papyrus sprung up. _WHAT IF ALPHYS CALLED ME?_ "SEE SANS THIS IS WHY I HAVE TO GET AFTER YOU, WITH ALL YOUR SLEEPING YOU COULD MISS AN OPPORTUNITY!" Papyrus said to himself. 

He felt around frantically for his phone before whipping the covers off, hoping the device would present itself. Papyrus decided he had probably left it downstairs after he got back yesterday and headed downstairs. 

Despite how Papyrus wanted to feel, he needed to get back to his old self. Some food would help. As long as the human was still in the underground there was still hope.

Papyrus made his way into the kitchen, spying the pancakes that he had made last morning...with Sans. Papyrus shook off the sadness, desperate to hold onto the last of his appetite as it tried to escape. He made a beeline for the plate of pancakes. Taking one in hand, he expected cold disappointment, but to Papyrus' surprise, they were warm and fluffy.

"HUH, THESE LEFTOVERS STILL TASTE FRESH."

A voice behind him replied. "Our pancakes got reset, these _are_ fresh pancakes bro."

Turning, Papyrus dropped the pancake to the floor.

"Hey now, pretty sure those are suppose to go onto a plate." Sans was sitting at the kitchen table, eating pancakes covered in ketchup, alive and well.

"Are you okay bro?" Sans then added after seeing the dumbstruck look on his brother's face.

"I-I-I THOUGHT... I SAW YOU... YOU WERE..."

Sans' confused face quickly turned to surprise as Papyrus lunged at his brother, sobbing with abandon. He snatched Sans from the chair, causing it to clatter to the floor. 

"ALPHYS DIDN'T WANT ME TO SEE YOU-" Between hiccups Papyrus tried to explain, "I-I WASN'T SUPPOSE TO BUT THE MONITOR IN THE LAB, IT-"

Feet dangling and smothered by Papyrus' arms, Sans sighed and patted his brother on the back. 

"I'm sorry Pap, if everything worked out like I had planned you wouldn't even have known I was gone. Did you wait long?"

Papyrus knelt on the kitchen floor, allowing Sans to stand again. "EVEN ONE DAY IS TOO LONG SANS!"

Papyrus pulled back from their hug, "WAIT. WHAT WAS YOUR PLAN? WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME?"

Sans placed a hand on the back of his neck, "Well...if I'm being honest-"

"HONESTY IS GOOD."

"-if I knew you were safe with Alphys in Hotland, then I wouldn't worry about confronting that thing..."

There was a pause before Sans continued.

"If it wasn't for you Pap, how you tried to get through during the timeline I was gone, I wouldn't have known how to stop the resets."

Papyrus' eyes lit up, "SANS YOU MEAN, IT'S OVER? HOW DID YOU DO IT?"

"Well I just did what the coolest guy I knew would do, I talked to them."

Papyrus could not have been more proud. Although the last handful of resets held their share of pain, Papyrus was thankful that they had inadvertently allowed him to understand Sans better. They had grown closer because of it, and Papyrus wouldn't trade that for the world.

The rest of the skeleton brothers' day would be life like normal. Normal conversations, normal training, normal Grillby's, but one thing that changed, something even the townsfolk could notice, was genuine smiles.

It would be several months before the child returned. 

The small figure stood opposite Sans, the light filtering through the stained windows of the Judgement Hall dance off the small knife in the figure's hand.

The child smiles as Sans reminds himself.  _For Pap._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm afraid that some of my implied things weren't obvious enough (like Chara/Frisk whispering in Sans ear that they accepted the deal). If this fic left questions for you guys, feel free to post them. I'd be happy to respond.


End file.
